Iran: We Developed a Missile 'Better than S-300'

Advanced missile would be used against aircraft and cruise missiles, says Tehran.

Dalit Halevy, 15/02/14 23:18

Illustration: S-300 missile defense batteries

Reuters

Iran continues to present technological achievements in the field of military industry. The Commander of the country's Air Defense Forces, Farzad Ismail, said that the missile "Bawer " (Faith) made ​​in Iran, has reached the operational phase of development and that it features more advanced capabilities than the S-300 Russian-made missile.

The S-300 is a long range surface-to-air missile – manufactured by the Russian firm Almaz – designed to intercept aircraft and cruise missiles, and its most advanced models can also target ballistic missiles.

The corresponding missile in the West is the MIM-104 Patriot made ​​in the United States.

At the end of the previous decade there was talk about Rusia's intention to sell the S-300 to Iran, but in 2010 a senior Russian source said that the transaction had been frozen.

Ismail noted that in response to the delay in the transfer of missiles from Russia to Iran, the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ali Khamenei, instructed the Iranian Ministry of Defense to develop its own missile. The matter was handed over to the Air Defense Command, Khatam al Anbia, and a number of scientific and academic centers.

The second phase of the project, which has been going on for five years, focuses on radar, launchers and the missile itself. A model of the missile was presented in military parades in Tehran.